Table covers are used on a variety of types of tables such as dining tables, banquet tables, and speaker stands, for example. It is often necessary to remove them, as when they get soiled or wrinkled. However, at the same time they need to be retained in place especially in applications where they are subjected to various outside influences such as wind on the beach, around swimming pools, on a veranda or in outside restaurants. Also, for those that have or consist only of a separate overhanging skirt portion, a way to detachably connect them to the table is necessary.
Heretofore, table covers have been taped to the table top, or, in the case of outdoor dining tables, the weight of place settings, ash trays, and condiment containers has been relied on to keep table covers in place. Taping is unsatisfactory because it is time consuming and the tape needs to be removed and reattached each time the table cover is changed. In the case of the outdoor tables, the table covers frequently blow off due to the wind causing dishes to be overturned and sometimes broken, with the attendant need to clean up. Also, the wind forces in some areas are such that the table covers cannot be used at all unless they are securely anchored to the table.
Heretofore clips connectable to the edge of a table were provided with grommets which snapped into sockets in a strip of material sewn onto table skirts. However, these devices required that clips be precisely located on the table to match the locations of sockets on the skirt. Further, the clips were not suitable to secure the table cloth in high winds.